NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 28 – Majority of farmers still face a challenge in accessing subsidized fertilizer despite it being made available countrywide in September, a new survey shows.
According to the latest Agriculture Sector Survey prepared by the Central Bank of Kenya(CBK), only 20 percent of sampled farms reported having accessed the subsidized fertilizer.
“While the supply of subsidized fertilizer was reported in most parts of the country, access remains a challenge,” said CBK.
Most surveyed farmers and traders recommended the use of the last-mile approach in the distribution of fertilizer by stocking the same in agro vets to ensure ease of access.
This could be made possible by making the Kenya Farmers Association (KFA) or the National Cereals and Produce Board(NCPB) master distributors of the fertilizers who will then sell at a discount to private outlets (agro vets), who then sell to the local farmers.
The farmers also called on the government to ensure the elimination of cartels involved in fertilizer distribution and the allocation of more fertilizer to large-scale farmers.
Meanwhile, most farmers who were able to access the fertilizer expect their output to increase by between 10 and 20 percent although this will depend on the rain availability given that over 90 per cent depend on rain to grow their crops.
“The high reliance on rain by farmers reflects their vulnerability to climate change,” the survey noted.
In the long run, the survey notes that the use of farm inputs that embody modern technology such as improved seeds, fertilizers, agrochemicals, farm implements, and irrigation for example has potential to increase the level of output and reduce poverty for the masses who rely on agriculture.
“Unfortunately, access to and utilization of farm inputs is beyond the reach of most farmers due to the associated costs.”
The use of inorganic fertilizer and manure ranked highest among the farm inputs. The use of herbicides, however, remains relatively low at 40 percent.
Other challenges constraining the use of farm inputs include high input costs e.g. seeds, fertilizer, toxic herbicides due to lack of proper soil analysis, unavailability of crop-specific fertilizer, and lack of certified seeds, and clean seeds particularly potatoes among others.
Respondents indicated that the uptake of these farm inputs could be revitalized by the introduction of the government’s agricultural input subsidy schemes such as the recent one on fertilizer prices.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, and Co-operatives announced new subsidized fertilizer prices in September after the government availed a Sh3.5 billion fertilizer subsidy.
President William Ruto directed the ministry to avail 1.4 million bags of fertilizer to farmers at a subsidized price of a maximum of Sh3,500 per 50 kg bag from the previous price of Sh6,500 to combat the high-cost producers in the farming sector incur.
Access to fertilizer has been a prominent threat to farmers, with its prices spiking occasioned by global phenomena such as the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
